


Begin Again

by Sini333



Series: JohnLock One-Shots [1]
Category: Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms, johnlock - Fandom
Genre: AU, Alternate Meeting, Begin Again by Taylor Swift, M/M, Poor Sherlock, Song fic, Victor is abusive, Watching Christmas movies in July, john is a sweetheart, mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-31
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-03-11 19:19:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13530882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sini333/pseuds/Sini333
Summary: Sherlock is coming out a bad relationship, John is a sweetheart."And on a Wednesday, in a cafe, I watched it begin again."





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As much as I dislike Taylor Swift as a person.... She writes great music... So here is a cute little two part series based on one of her songs. Hope you like it... Enjoy <3

Sherlock placed his headphones in his ears, trying to block out the sounds of the crowded coffee shop. Victor had always hated this place, though Sherlock never knew why. He enjoyed the homey atmosphere, and the owner, Mrs. Hudson, was an old family friend.

Then again, towards the end it had begun to feel as though Victor's entire reason for existing was to hate what Sherlock loved.

The song playing through his headphones reminded him of that. Victor never understood the song, claiming it to be boring and beneath him. Sherlock loved the song, the lyrics never failing to send chills down his spine when he listened to it.

Sherlock heard his name being called faintly and glanced up from the textbook he was studying, a sharp dismissal planned for anyone but Mrs. Hudson.

His words died on his tongue when his eyes met kind, steel blue ones.

The young man was smiling down at him, his eyebrow cocked and head tilted to the side, and it took Sherlock far too long to register that he had been the one to say his name. He pulled his earphones out and tried to make his voice work, but only managed a timid hum.

"I said; you're Sherlock, right? Mycroft's little brother?" The confusion must have shown on Sherlock's face, because the young man laughed softly and reached out his hand. "John Watson, Myc is dating a buddy of mine." Recognition sparked in Sherlock's mind as he shook John's hand.

They had met once before, a few months prior at a party that Mycroft and Victor had dragged him to.

Meeting John had been the only enjoyable part of that night.

"Right, Gavin's house party or something, right?" John laughed, a more full sound that sent a flare of warmth through Sherlock's chest. He quickly tamped down on the feeling, not willing to let his heart get involved this time.

"It's Greg, but yeah." John laughed, motioning to the seat across from Sherlock. "Mind if I join you? Or are you expecting your boyfriend, what's his name, Markus?" Sherlock felt his chest tighten at the mention of his recent ex.

"Victor, and no. He and I are no longer together. You are welcome to join me though." John blushed and pulled out the seat, sitting across from Sherlock and offering him a sympathetic smile.

"That sucks man, breakups are the worst."

"Yes, ten out of ten would not recommend." John snorted, dropping his head against the table and laughing, sending a strange shock through Sherlock's body.

Victor never laughed at anything he said, at least nothing he was supposed to laugh at. He never had an issue laughing at Sherlock when he told him he loved him.

"What are you reading?" John leaned forward, propping his chin in his hand and looking at Sherlock with eyes that screamed curiosity.

"Uh, it's a book about bees." Sherlock blushed, pulling the heavy volume off the table and clutching it to his chest. Victor hated Sherlock's obsession with bees.

"That whole book is about bees?" John sounded amazed, not angry or frustrated like Victor used to, and Sherlock fought down a happy grin. "Jesus, how much information could there possibly be?"

"This is only the third volume. I own all ten." John's jaw dropped and he stared at the book in awe.

"Seriously? How many kinds of bees are there?"

"There are about twenty-thousand known species, in seven different biological families." John rubbed a hand over his mouth, his face still a mask of awe.

"That's amazing." Sherlock blinked rapidly, unsure how to process the conversation. Even his conversations with Victor in the beginning hadn't gone like this.

"Y-You really think so?" John's smile faded slightly, but he nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, I had no idea. Do you have a favourite?" Sherlock didn't bother to fight the smile that crossed his face.

 

They chatted about bees and music and art for hours, Sherlock starting to let his walls down a little more each time John laughed.

"I can't believe you've never seen White Christmas! It's a classic!" Sherlock had no idea how they had gotten onto the topic of Christmas movies, but he couldn't bring himself to care one way or another. "My Mum and I watch it every year. That and Miracle on 34th Street."

"My family was never very big on movies when I was growing up, and Victor-" Sherlock's chest tightened at the mention of his abusive ex, and he cleared his throat, trying to ignore the pain. "H-He was never a fan of Christmas." Sherlock felt the pity pouring off John, and his mouth filled with a bitter taste.

"Hey, are you free Saturday?" Sherlock furrowed his brow, but nodded anyways. "Perfect, you're coming over to mine and we are going to watch White Christmas." Sherlock glanced up at that, cocking an eyebrow at the grinning young man across from him.

"It's July." Joh laughed, the sound piercing the armor Sherlock had started reassembling around his heart.

"I know, but everyone needs to see White Christmas, and I don't want to wait five months." Sherlock felt a smile tugging at his lips again at the boyish grin on John's face. "What do you say? We can get take-away, curl up under heavy blankets and watch the best Christmas movie ever?" Something clicked in the back of Sherlock's mind, and he felt panic start to rise in his chest.

"Y-You mean, like a date?" John shrugged, that boyish grin still on his face.

"Do you want it to be a date?" Sherlock wanted to say yes, but the memory of how much Victor had hurt him pressed at the back of his thoughts, making him hesitate.

"I-I'm not a good person to date John-"

"Did Victor tell you that?" Sherlock froze, wanting to deny it, wanting to say that no, every one of his previous partners had the same opinion.

But the only voice he could hear was Victor's.

A warm hand gripped his own tightly and he gasped, glancing up to meet the earnest eyes of John Watson.

"He was wrong Sherlock. I don't know what he did to you, but I do know this; Victor McFuckerton is an absolute moron for hurting someone like you." Sherlock couldn't fight the laugh that bubbled out of his chest. "There we go. Much better, eh?" Sherlock nodded, wiping his eyes and returning the grip John still had on his hand timidly. "So, what do you say? My place, Saturday, seven o'clock?"

Despite the warning bells still blaring in his mind, Sherlock nodded, grinning back at John as the boyish grin returned to John's face.

"Perfect! What's your number? I'll text you my address." They exchanged numbers quickly, John chattering on about how much Sherlock was going to love the movie.

Sherlock had the feeling that anything that made John that happy, Sherlock was going to love.

 

They parted ways far too soon, Sherlock could have stayed talking to John until Mrs. Hudson closed the store, but the other man had to work.

 

When Sherlock got home, he sat in his chair, thinking about John, and how drastically his life had changed in a single day.

 

_I've been spending the last eight months_

_Thinking all love ever does_

_Is break, and burn, and end._

_But on a Wednesday, in a café_

_I watched it begin again._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a chance I will expand this into a longer fic... If you wanna see more, let me know :)

Sherlock stood outside the door to John's flat, fussing with his shirt collar and desperately trying to ignore the voice in the back of his mind that was screaming at him to run.

Victor would have yelled at him for being tardy, called him a moron or something just as degrading. He shook his head, he didn't want to think about Victor anymore, not when he was supposed to be meeting John.

His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out, his chest tightening when he saw John's name lightening up the screen.

Hey! Buzzer doesn't work, so just text when you get here – JW

Sherlock stared at his phone for a moment, waiting for whatever harsh message was going to come next, but none came. He had to remind himself that John wasn't Victor, that he wouldn't do something like that.

I'm here – SH

Great! I'll be right down – JW

In the one minute and thirty seconds it took for John to appear at the door, Sherlock nearly ran six times. But then John was there, his eyes bright and face split in a charming grin, and the ball of nausea that had formed at the back of Sherlock's throat started to ease slightly.

"Hey! Come on in, don't mind the smell, someone died in one of the flats and they been cleaning out her place." Curiosity piqued in the back of Sherlock's mind. "Older lady, lived alone with no family so it took a few days for anyone to notice something was wrong. I eventually had to yell at the Land Lord because the smell got so bad." John lead Sherlock up a small flight of stairs, chattering on about the building and his neighbours.

 

John lived on the third floor, a tiny little bedsit that consisted of a kitchen, bathroom, and sitting room/bedroom. The whole thing was less than half the size of Sherlock's own place, and there were almost no personal belongings.

"Sorry, it's a bit small. Can't really afford much more than this." John shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. He grinned up at Sherlock and winked, that boyish grin returning to his lips as he backed into the kitchen.

"You shouldn't apologize, in fact, this is quite the feat." John's smile went from boyish to slightly confused and Sherlock blushed, he hadn't intended on voicing that thought out loud, but now that he had started, there was no way he could bail. "I-I mean- normally I wait for the third date before I agree to get into bed with someone." John blinked at him for a moment, and Sherlock instantly regretted speaking. He was about to retract what he said when a bright laugh filled the tiny flat.

Sherlock watched John laughing, a smile tugging at his own lips as John clutched at his sides, nearly doubled over with the force of his laugh.

It had been years since Sherlock had seen someone laugh that hard at something he said, and he couldn't think of a more beautiful sight.

John finally managed to get himself under control, wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes and giggling softly.

"Damn, cute and funny, how'd I get so lucky?" Sherlock blushed, glaring at the floor between his feet and chewing anxiously on his bottom lip. "You like hot coco? Can't watch White Christmas without coco."

 

John had set up the T.V. so that they could sit on the bed, curled under the blankets while propped against the wall.

 

The movie was enjoyable, an interesting premise with decent music, and several times, Sherlock found himself laughing along with John.

 

Halfway through the movie, Sherlock's phone rang, and the name lighting up his screen made his chest tighten painfully.

"Sorry, I-I've got to- I've got to get this." He mumbled, disentangling himself from the mess of blankets and answering the call. "H-Hello?"

"Sherly, so listen, I was thinking about what you said the other day-"

"Victor, I-I can't talk right now-"

"What? Why not? Having another sad wank by yourself?" Sherlock blushed, wrapping one of his arms around his chest and avoiding John's gaze.

"N-No, I-I'm actually on a date-" Victor's cruel laugh made Sherlock flinch.

"Like anyone would want to date you. Seriously though, if you miss me that much-" Sherlock gasped as the phone was wrenched from his hand, John spinning away from him and pressing the speakerphone button.

"Sh-Sherlock! Jesus, not right now, I just finished!" John moaned, a boyish grin back on his lips as he held the phone just out of reach. Sherlock tried desperately to get his phone back, his mind spinning with panic and his cheeks burning at the way John's voice sounded.

"Who is this?" Victor sounded furious, and Sherlock felt a flare of guilt that he couldn't place.

"Name's John- Sherlock- fuck, right there- who's this?"

"Victor, Sherlock's boyfriend." John stopped fighting, spinning back to face Sherlock, confusion and a touch of hurt in his eyes.

"Boyfriend?" Sherlock shook his head, feeling his chest tighten as he realized what Victor was doing. "Funny, he didn't mention you. Though he did mention some poor old sap he used to fuck, what did you say his name was Gorgeous? Right, Markus or something I think." John winked at him, mouthing the word  _sorry_  before suddenly reaching up and tugging on Sherlock's curls.

Sherlock hit his knees, letting out an embarrassing moan that echoed through the bedsit.

"Holy fuck-" John whispered, not letting go of Sherlock's hair, but loosening his grip slightly. Sherlock avoided his gaze, embarrassment turning his cheeks dark. "Listen Rufus, I've uh- I'm going to have to let you go. Bloody insatiable this one is, eh? Ta!" John hung up the phone and released Sherlock's hair, stepping back to give Sherlock some space.

Sherlock stood, his body trembling and eyes filling with tears. He reached for his coat, already sensing that John was going to want him to leave. Victor had found his hair pulling kink disgusting.

"My apologies, I'll be leaving now." Sherlock reached for his phone, but John gripped it tightly and slid it into his back pocket, shaking his head. "J-John-"

"We didn't finish the movie." Sherlock blinked at John, uncertainty washing over his mind as he waited for the inevitable snap. "What's wrong? I told you we were going to watch White Christmas, and that's what we're going to do. Unless there's something else you'd rather do instead?"

Something clicked in the back of Sherlock's mind and suddenly everything seemed clear.

John was attracted to him. He didn't mind that Sherlock was a little strange, that he was obsessed with bees and liked getting his hair tugged. He didn't care that Sherlock had a nasty ex that had hurt him so thoroughly that it would probably take him years to mend his heart.

John wanted to be with Sherlock, he wanted to date him and be seen in public with him. He wanted to get to know everything about Sherlock, had even been aroused by the sound that had escaped him moments before.

John didn't mind his baggage, he even seemed to find him funny.

John wasn't Victor.

Sherlock dropped his coat and closed the distance between him and John, pressing a firm kiss to the shorter man's lips. John let out a soft sound and gripped Sherlock's hips tightly, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss.

 

_I've been spending the last eight months_

_Thinking all love ever does_

_Is break, and burn, and end_

_But on a Wednesday in a café_

_I watched it begin again._


End file.
